Email newsletters are an essential part of any content marketing strategy.
Businesses and entrepreneurs often keep up with their customers and internal staff via monthly email newsletters. If you create content for your business or the company you work for, then you’re likely familiar with creating email blasts and newsletters on a regular basis.
Depending on how often you schedule your company newsletter out to your subscribers, you’ll likely need plenty of creative ideas and content for each send. Creative content includes not only written copy for each section of your newsletter but also eye-catching images.
Most email marketing software includes image tools that allow you to place graphics into your email newsletters, including email headers. It’s important to represent your brand well not only through high-quality copy, but also with engaging graphics.
A well-designed email newsletter header will visually align with your brand while also communicating important information your audience needs to know. Using attention-grabbing images will help showcase your newest product launch, offer your customers a discount on their next order, or announce any upcoming special events.
Looking for fresh ideas for your email marketing, plus the images that go with each send? We’ve assembled some prompts for you today, along with a few of our favorite graphic examples from Snappa.
Ready to get started? Let’s jump into it.
New Product Launches
If you’re launching a new product, service, or offering of some kind, a company newsletter is a perfect place to announce it.
Creating an email campaign around a new launch often involves a series of emails–not just one. You might choose to send out one email that teases the new offer, one to reveal and announce the launch, and a follow-up that includes a time-sensitive discount your audience can use to place a one-time order.
However, you choose to build your launch campaign, make your email newsletter an important piece of the puzzle. You can use your email header image to draw attention to the new product right off the bat. Take a look:
Use your images to make it extra easy for your subscribers to get the latest updates. Notice how the word “NEW” is prominently displayed in the copy. Right away, you know by looking at the image that there’s a new item available.
Blog Posts
If publishing blog posts is part of your strategy, then you’ll need to make sure your audience is seeing them. One way to make this happen is by emailing your latest blog posts out to your subscribers whenever you publish something new.
Any time you send out a new blog post, use your email header image to communicate what’s inside. That way, your subscribers know what they’re getting from the moment they click to open your email.
Consider not only announcing your blog post but including its title on your header image like this:
Your followers will see your subject line and preview text before they open your emails, so you’ll want to make sure it starts off with a bang. Once they’ve clicked to open, you’ll want your image to capture the mood of your blog post to set their expectations.
Promotions
Emailing special promotions to your customers will keep them in the loop, and coming back for more.
Your email header image is a prominent place to feature special promotions for your customers. If you’re running a sale, as in the image below, you can add text to your header that gives subscribers that information right away.
Not only is a header image a great way to get their attention from the beginning, but it’s also a place where you can showcase an image of the product or service you’re discounting, too. The key is to keep your image simple and to the point, so your subscribers know exactly what you’re offering them.
Thank-You Emails
Thank-you emails work well as automated sends. Just because they’re automated, though, doesn’t mean you shouldn’t pay their graphics as much attention as your other campaigns.
Businesses often send thank-you emails when someone subscribes to their list or purchases a product. Designing a simple, brand-centric email header for these sends adds a nice touch.
Your thank-you email header can be simplistic and clean, as long as the design aligns with your brand. Experiment with Snappa’s templates and design elements to get the right look and feel so you can show your gratitude with style.
If you need an assist with designing your header, we’ve assembled some useful graphic design tips here.
News and Behind-the-Scenes Updates
News and behind-the-scenes email updates are a critical part of any content strategy. If you’re not already sending your subscribers updates like this, it’s never too late to start.
Audiences love to find out what’s going on with their favorite brands behind-the-scenes. You can share:
- Progress updates on new projects, products, or services
- Images or links to videos of your team having a great time
- Process images that give followers a glimpse into the creation of your next offer
- Housekeeping updates regarding your brand
- Interesting and noteworthy updates
Special Events
Your newsletter is the perfect place to announce upcoming special events your brand is involved in.
Maybe you host in-person or virtual gatherings, or you might be a special guest at another upcoming event. Either way, use your newsletter to announce upcoming events ahead of time so your followers can participate if they want.
An email campaign centered around a particular event might consist of more than one email. You can announce the event, then send a reminder or two at intervals (such as one week before, then one day before). Then, circle back and share updates about how it went.
Use your email header to share pertinent information, such as the name, location, and date of the event. This is a great way to get information to your followers at a glance.
Be sure to use a large clear font that stands out from your background image and is easy for your audience to read. You can find a list of great free fonts here.
Conclusion
Now that you’re equipped with some solid email newsletter ideas, it’s time to create headers for them. Remember to create a great-looking, informative email header that aligns with your brand. Whenever possible, include a strong call-to-action (CTA) in your header, too.
Our graphic creation tool Snappa comes pre-loaded with tons of well-designed templates you can use to get started on your email newsletter, including all of the images you see in this post. You can also use our handy custom sizing tool to get an image that’s just the right size for your specific email service.
If you need a little help creating graphics that really pop, Snappa is a great place to start. Even better, you can start for free. Learn more and sign up here.
What ideas have you found worked well for your company newsletter? Let us know in the comments below!
